Vehicle seat

Claim 1

A SAFETY SEAT FOR A VEHICLE FOR PROTECTING THE OCCUPANT OF THE SEAT DURING A SUDDEN STOP, COMPRISING A SEAT MOUNTED ON A VEHICLE FLOOR, SAID SEAT HAVING BACK AND BOTTOM PORTIONS, SAID BACK PORTION OF SAID SEAT HAVING MEANS DEFINING A CURVED GUIDE TRACK ALONG A PORTION OF SAID BACK PORTION, MEANS ON THE VEHICLE FLOOR DEFINING A FLOOR MOUNTED GUIDE TRACK FOR THE BOTTOM OF THE SEAT, MEANS ON SAID SEAT COOPERATING WITH THE FLOOR MOUNTED TRACK TO GUIDE SAID SEAT ALONG SAID TRACK, A VERTICALLY EXTENDING CANTILEVER BEAM FIXED AT ITS LOWER END TO THE FRAME OF THE VEHICLE AND HAIVNG AN UPPER END WHICH COOPERATES WITH SAID CURVED GUIDE TRACK SO THAT SAID CURVED GUIDE TRACK MOVES IN AN ARCUATE PATH RELATIVE TO SAID UPPER PORTION OF THE CANTILEVER BEAM SAID COOPERATING UPPER PORTION OF THE CANTILEVER BEAM BEING POSITIONED ABOVE THE COMBINED CENTER OF GRAVITY OF THE SEAT AND ITS OCCUPANT, AND BEING ADAPTED TO REMAIN IN A COOPERATING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CURVED GUIDE TRACK UPON THE APPLICATION OF A FORCE THERETO WHICH WILL BEND THE CANTILEVER BEAM, SAID SEAT BEING MOVABLE WITH ITS CURVED GUIDE TRACK RELATIVE TO THE COOPERATING UPPER END OF SAID CANTILEVER BEAM BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION WHEREIN SAID SEAT IS UPRIGHT AND A SECOND POSITION WHEREIN THE BOTTOM PORTION OF THE SET IS MORE NEARLY VERTICAL THAN HORIZONTAL, THE COOPERATION BETWEEN THE UPPER PORTION OF THE CANTILEVER BEAM AND THE CURVED GUIDE TRACK OBTAINING WHEN SAID SEAT IS IN ITS FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS SO THAT THE CANTILEVER BEAM MAY BEND WHEN A PREDETERMINED FORCE IS APPLIED THERETO WHILE SAID SEAT IS IN ITS SECOND POSITION, MEANS RETAINING SAID SEAT IN ITS FIRST POSITION AND BEING RELEASABLE WHEN THE SEAT AND ITS OCCUPANT ARE DECELERATED AT A PREDETERMINED RATE.